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# Beneficiary designation use case

> See how Docusign for Developers tools and technologies can automate a personalized, secure beneficiary designation process for your customers.

In banking, the absence of account beneficiary designations can significantly increase costs. Without beneficiaries on record for deceased account owners, banks must deploy resources to monitor the probate process, verify asset transfer requests from heirs, or manage an escheatment procedure. In addition, accounts that are missing verified beneficiaries can expose an organization to legal risks. To avoid this, banks seek to identify accounts that lack beneficiaries and initiate an automated process for account owners to add them.

## The developer challenge

To be effective at increasing the proportion of accounts with beneficiaries, engineering teams must devise an integrated solution that provides:

* **Reduction in manual processing:** Automatically contact customers who have not designated beneficiaries, eliminating the need for manual tracking and contact initiation.
* **Personalized self-service:** Enable customers to initiate a convenient process that is tailored to their account specifics.
* **Fraud prevention:** Include security and verification features that protect the organization against unauthorized activity.
* **Seamless data collection:** Extract customer-supplied beneficiary information and store it in the organizationʼs system of record.
* **Auditing and compliance:** Meet legal requirements for customer signature, document retention, and audit trails.

Building an app that handles all this can be costly and time-consuming. With [Docusign for Developers](https://www.docusign.com/blog/developers/streamline-end-to-end-agreement-management-with-docusign-a-developer), your organization can make use of existing components that meet these requirements.

## How Docusign for Developers can help

Docusign for Developers offers a variety of platform services and tools that your organization can leverage to develop a custom solution. The next sections describe some of these technologies.

### Workflows

[Workflow Builder](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=yff1696971835267\&topicId=dnx1696972415150.html) is a Docusign platform service that executes agreement workflows. You can use the no-code workflow designer to [build a workflow](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?language=en_US\&bundleId=yff1696971835267\&topicId=pps1696973636517.html) that automates steps in the account beneficiary process, reducing the need for time-consuming, manual processes.

Automated workflow steps can include:

* Sending customers an email reminder to add beneficiaries
* Verifying their identity
* Displaying a web form prepopulated with account information
* Enabling them to electronically sign their beneficiary update request
* Exporting completed beneficiary documents to cloud storage

Workflows can be started via [several methods](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?language=en_US\&bundleId=yff1696971835267\&topicId=ztb1727892686033.html), including triggering them programmatically using a [Workflow Builder API integration](/use-cases/beneficiary-designation#workflow-builder-api).

![Workflow steps](/_fern-files/_img/c16d554e684acc0aa526ed39ad27500b2b367140b6b4c0af0c72662947f72d59.webp)

### Identity verification

Docusign offers robust [identity verification](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=ced1643229641057\&topicId=zfu1578456528197.html) options to meet your organizationʼs security requirements. Options include SMS and phone authentication, knowledge-based authentication, and verification using a supported form of ID.

A verification step can be added to a workflow to validate a customerʼs identity before proceeding to steps that display account information.

![Verify Someone's Identity workflow step](/_fern-files/_img/e1695c52270474c15feb256c022f7db8d8fcc1350633eddfad1bd694753ed18b.webp)

### Web Forms

A [web form](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=gmi1660583110357\&topicId=brp1660583998599.html) is a page containing fields that customers fill out. You create web forms using the no-code [Web Forms builder](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=gmi1660583110357\&topicId=gpc1660591510274.html). This tool enables you to define a sequence of form pages, form validation and conditional logic, and fields that display customer data.

Web Forms offer the flexibility to create custom data collection pages that walk your customers through the process of supplying beneficiary information. A web form can be incorporated as a step in a workflow. After a customer has supplied information in a web form, the data can be used in subsequent workflow steps.

Web Forms can also be delivered to customers using a [Web Forms API integration](/use-cases/beneficiary-designation#web-forms-api).

![Web form](/_fern-files/_img/3d400279b085799b0638659c90ef15d9694b3f6fa1cc89cd46f89e5ed221f090.webp)

### Data IO

An [extension app](https://www.docusign.com/blog/developers/beyond-e-signatures-unlocking-the-full-potential-of-docusign-extension-apps) is an application that provides additional functionality for Docusign agreement processes via requests to an external API service. Depending on the features required, an extension app implements one or more [supported extensions](/extension-apps/extension-apps-101/supported-extensions).

For this use case, the [data IO extension](/extension-apps/extension-apps-101/supported-extensions/data-io) can be invoked from a workflow to:

* Retrieve customer data from a CRM, if available, so that it can be prefilled in a web form, minimizing data entry for customers and providing a personalized experience
* Make the data available for use in subsequent workflow steps as needed
* Write customer information back to the organizationʼs data source, ensuring that data is captured accurately for downstream processing

![Data read step configuration](/_fern-files/_img/700b70e60453cfb4d34a80a2722a36175562b241eb0677a89733f2fb4c18260e.webp)

### File output to cloud storage

Another applicable extension for an account beneficiary process is the [file output cloud storage extension](/extension-apps/extension-apps-101/supported-extensions/file-output-cloud-storage). It can be invoked from a workflow to write customersʼ electronically signed beneficiary documents to a cloud storage location to comply with auditing and retention requirements.

This extension supports file output operations that are tailored to the cloud storage structure, enabling a workflow process builder to specify the appropriate file destination and naming convention.

![File output workflow step](/_fern-files/_img/1eefb4a5b1f8332b3273e7c3413c238974385d267445a62844d72abb45121757.webp)

### Workflow Builder API

The Docusign [Workflow Builder API](/docs/workflow-builder-api) enables you to create API integrations that start workflow instances automatically. An instance is a runtime execution of the steps in a workflow for a specific customer. Workflow instances can be embedded into your web application for a seamless user experience.

A Workflow Builder API integration can retrieve customer information from your CRM and supply it in the request to start a workflow instance. This makes the customer data available as workflow variables that can be used in a web form, an eSignature envelope, and other workflow components.

![Maestro API](/_fern-files/_img/20a7423dd0c39737d5d8d5ef863c35412253a58f65a8b3aa1d89a2bece6e9888.webp)

### Web Forms API

The Docusign [Web Forms API](/docs/web-forms-api) provides endpoints for generating and managing web form instances. An instance is a copy of a web form configuration that is displayed to a customer in a browser.

Web Forms API integrations offer secure delivery, either by embedding web form instances in an authenticated web application or by providing access via an email. For additional security, the API supports SMS and phone authentication.

Other API capabilities include:

* Prefilling web form instances with customer information from your CRM
* Applying a custom logo and other branding features to web form instances
* Triggering data verification for user-supplied [email addresses](/extension-apps/extension-app-reference/extension-contracts/email-address-verification) and [phone numbers](/extension-apps/extension-app-reference/extension-contracts/phone-verification)
* Monitoring instance status
* Retrieving user-submitted data for export back to your CRM

![Web Forms API](/_fern-files/_img/a70b471578a9cad4427cc552a4c0bf87a96bd524c0ccdbbc41dfdcc8a287de19.webp)

## Resources for implementing an account beneficiary solution

Select a tab below for links to articles, examples, and videos to help you get up to speed quickly on Docusign technologies.

#### High-level overviews

* [Workflow Builder overview](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=yff1696971835267\&topicId=dnx1696972415150.html): Get an introduction to Workflow Builder workflows and access educational resources.
* [ID verification overview](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?bundleId=ced1643229641057\&topicId=zfu1578456528197.html): Learn about the types of identity verification available in Docusign products.
* [Web Forms overview](https://support.docusign.com/s/document-item?language=en_US&_gl=1*1u34way*_gcl_au*ODczOTUxNTUwLjE3MjcyOTgwNDc.\&bundleId=gmi1660583110357\&topicId=ofz1660589243255.html): Get the basics about Web Forms and review the documentation.
* [Data IO extension overview](/extension-apps/extension-apps-101/supported-extensions/data-io): Learn about the data input and output flows that can retrieve and update data on an external system.
* [File output cloud storage extension overview](/extension-apps/extension-apps-101/supported-extensions/file-output-cloud-storage): See how file output requests function during workflow configuration and execution.
* [Workflow Builder API overview](/docs/workflow-builder-api): Start here for information about the API that enables your app to trigger and manage workflow instances.
* [Web Forms API overview](/docs/web-forms-api): Find out how your app can call this API to create web form instances and deliver them to your customers.

#### Walkthroughs with sample code

* [Secure, verify, comply: Automate identity checks with Docusign APIs](https://www.docusign.com/blog/developers/automate-identity-checks-with-docusign-apis): Combine workflows, API integrations, and extension apps to create a secure, flexible identity verification flow.
* [Seamlessly integrating Workflow Builder with data systems using data IO extensions](https://www.docusign.com/blog/developers/seamlessly-integrating-maestro-with-data-systems-using-data-io-extensions): Integrate external data sources with automated workflows that save time and eliminate errors.
* [Reducing manual agreement work, part 1: Automating file export to cloud storage](https://www.docusign.com/blog/developers/automating-file-export-to-cloud-storage): Implement a solution that reliably and securely writes customer files to your cloud storage system.
* [How to trigger a Workflow Builder workflow](/docs/workflow-builder-api/how-to/trigger-workflow): Programmatically initiate a Maestro workflow instance populated with customer-specific information from your back-end system.
* [How to create and send a web form instance](/docs/web-forms-api/how-to/create-send-instance): Create a web form instance and deliver it to recipients via email.

#### Example applications with repos

* [Healthcare sample app](https://healthcare.sampleapps.docusign.com): A medical records scenario demonstrates how Docusign ID verification ensures that private information is shared with only authorized parties.
* [Web Forms sample app](https://webforms.sampleapps.docusign.com/): Three loan application scenarios show how to leverage the Web Forms API to collect customer information.
* [Workflows sample app](https://workflows.sampleapps.docusign.com/): This app triggers workflow instances and displays status information in a dashboard.
* [Data IO reference implementation](https://github.com/docusign/extension-app-data-io-reference-implementation): This repo shows you how a data IO extension app supplies data model information and responds to read and write requests.
* [File output cloud storage reference implementation](http://github.com/docusign/extension-app-file-output-cloud-storage-reference-implementation): With this repo, you can review file output requests and responses and see how file output works when invoked from a workflow.

#### Videos

* [ID verification developer deep dive](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3ztq3erEnw): Learn how Docusign solves identity verification challenges for developers.
* [How to set up a reference implementation](https://youtu.be/_4p7GWK5aoA?list=PLXpRTgmbu4oqnHn6pusz4riseJHKZ42HW): Set up and run an extension app reference implementation.
* [Write files to cloud storage from Docusign workflows](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLj2RJtVYLQ): Implement a custom solution that generates agreements and writes them to a cloud storage system.
* [How to trigger and embed Docusign Workflow Builder workflows with Bash & code launcher](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjvjTIO6B4A): Start a Workflow Builder workflow instance using Bash and the Docusign code launcher.